Ball-point pen with ball-bearing mount



Afro/wsrf INVENToR. Mance Jeed Fiied Deo'. 29. 1948 M J REED BALL POINT PEN WITH BALL-BEARING MOUNT Feb. 3, 1953 Patented Feb. 3, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BALL-POINT PEN WITH BALL-BEARING MOUNT Maurice J. Reed, Red Bank, N. J., assignor of threereighths to Anne E. Reed and twoeghths to. Thomas J. Eurell, II, both of Middletown Township, Monmouth County, N. J.

Application December 29, 1948, Serial No. 67,803

Nos. 778,907, filed October 9, `1947, now Patent No. 2,557,563, and 26,460 led May ll, 1948, there are disclosed pen constructions involving means defining a plurality of conduits leading to a comman chamber contiguous to the ball applicator of a ball point pen. It is explained in these applications that the purpose of the plurality of conduits is to produce a manometer effect whereby air bubbles trapped in the inl; supply line between the reservoir and the ball are quickly expelled to insure aV continuous uninterrupted flow of ink to the writing sphere. These applications also disclose rellable reservoirs of both the replacement type` and the `permanent installation type.

It has been found that the use of va plurality the quality of the lines producible by them detef riorates. An analysis ofthe reason for this deterioration has shown that it results from ball Wear, the ball losing its spherical shape, resulting in uneven rotation and the production of lines which are pale and ill defined.

In an eiiort to overcome` the foregoingI disadvantage, some of the pen manufacturers are now providing for the replacementof the ball applicator at the same time that the ink refill. is made so that the writing quality of. the instrument is maintained. Obviously enough, this scheme is an expensive one, for it makes necessary a ball mounting arrangement in which the ball is readily accessible and requires the manufacture and use of quite a number of ball applicators during the life of each pen. Furthermore, readily removable ball mounts are not too well susceptible for use with a multileg feed line of the type disclosed in the applications mentioned in the second paragraph above.

In view of the foregoing, it is an object of this invention to provide a mount for ball applicaters of such nature as to improve to a marked extent the wearing quality of the ball, whereby frequent replacement is avoided and the quality t of the line produced by the ball is maintained at high quality through very long periods of use.

It is another object of this invention to provide a low friction mount for ball applicators correlated and constituting a part of a multi-leg 3 Claims. (Cl. 12p-42.0

feed channel extending between the chamber in which the applicator picks up the ink and a reservoir which may be of either the rellable or the replacement type.

It is contemplated according to this invention to provide in the tip `of a pen of the ball point `type means dividing the interior of the tip into at least two chambersinter-communicating adjacent the ball and to provide the ball applicator with a ball-bearing mount, the accommodating sockets for which are deiinedrby themeans dividing the interior of the point into two intercommunicating zones.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent upon consideration of the iollowing detailed description of the preferred embodiment in connection with the annexed drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of a pen incorporating the ball mount and subdividing partition of the presentY invention;

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional View to an enlarged scale of the partition and ball mount of the assembly of. Figure` 1` showing the ball sockets and the placement of the 'bearings for the ball applicator.

Figure 3 is a perspective View; of the partition and` ball socketsshown inFiguresl and 2;

Figure 4 is a view in horizontal section taken onthe line of Figure 2;` Yand Figure` 5 is `a view in horizontal section taken along the line 5.-.5` of Figure 2.

Referring now in greater. detail to Figure 1, the pen comprises a hollow tip portion It which is f' internally and enternally of. generally frustoconical conguration, a barrel o1' casing portion tI and an inl; reservoir of the cartridge replacement type` designated `by the reference numeral i2. The tip ,portionl IB; is provided with an upper annular flange which is both internally and externally threaded. The externally threaded portion co-acts with the internally thread-free end of the casing,r portion II while the internally threaded portion of the annular flange cca-acts with the externally threaded lower end of the replacement cartridge I2. Thus the cartridge or reservoir I2 is rigidly held from the tip. A perforated dome-shaped member I3 is mounted in .the upper portion of the tip I0 and this dome co-acts with a frangible diaphragm I 4 which seals the end of the reservoir cartridge I2 from the time it is iilled until the time it is installed in the pen.

The portion of the pen heretofore described does not constitute a part of this invention, but

3 is shown in application Serial No. 26,460, led May 11, 1948. As described in that application, replacement cartridges such as I2 already filled with ink, can be furnished to the user who in installing them, rst unscrews the barrel or casing II thenunscrews the old cartridge I2, then discards it, then threads in the new cartridge causing the dome I3 to rupture the diaphragm I4 to release the ink to the interior of the tip and iinally applies the barrel II.

The hollow interior of the tip I9 of the pen of the present invention is provided with a hollow cylindrical partition I5 having radially extending therefrom three centering lugs located 120 apart in each of two axially spaced groups I6 and I1. The hollow cylinder I5 is held in position by an interrupted spring annulus I8 which seats in an annular groove milled on an inner face of the tip i at a plane just above the plane of the centering lugs I6. This spring acting on the centering lugs i6 holds the hollow cylinder I5 against axial displacement upwardly as the apparatus is viewed in the drawings. As can be seen, in Figure the lower end of the cylinder I5 is provided with three sockets I9 spaced 120 apart, each conforming to a portion of the surface of the sphere. These sockets receive ball-bearings 20 which tangentially contact and bear upon the ball applicator 2I. Thus axial displacement of the sleeve I5 in one is prevented by the spring annulus I8 and in another direction by the axial mounting oi the -ball applicator 2l. It is apparent that some space must be left so that ink can get from the chamber 22 or to the surface of the ball to be carried thereby for application to the surface on which the line is to be applied.

By the arrangement shown, it is apparent that the wear on the ball is reduced-to a marked extent due to the fact that the entire bearing assembly is lubricated by the ink and the contact of the ball with any surface is tangential. Not only does this improve the wearing qualities of the ball, but it has been found to result in a smoother writing action at all stages of operation.

The advantages of the manometer eiect discussed in the prior applications mentioned above is not at all lost since the tip is subdivided into two zones designated in Figure 2 as 23 within the cylinder I5 and 24 dened between the cylinder I5 and the tip portion I0. These zones intercommunicate at 22 between the several balls 20. Furthermore, the same structure which subdivides the tip into two concentric annular zones also serves as a ball retainer for the balls 28.

What is claimed is:

1. A writing instrument comprising a generally spherical writing ball applicator, a hollow tip portion providing an aperture through which said applicator partially projects, a reservoir for supplying writing fluid to a hollow interior of said acaaazr tip portion, a, hollow cylindrical partition subdividing the hollow interior of said portion into two concentric writing fluid conduits terminating adjacent but spaced from the ball applicator, the end of said partition adjacent the aperture in the tip portion through which the ball applicator projects having sockets therein and balls in said sockets bearing tangentially on said ball applicator.

2. A writing instrument comprising a generally spherical writing ball applicator, a frusta-conical hollow tip portion providing an aperture through which said ball applicator partially projects, a reservoir for supplying writing fluid to the hollow interior of said'tip portion, a hollow cylindrical element contained within said tip portion and extending axially thereof for a major portion of the length of said tip portion, a plurality of lugs projecting radially from said cylindrical element to center said cylindrical element within said tip portion, one end of said cylindrical element having sockets therein, and balls in said sockets bearing tangentially on said ball applicator, said cylindrical element subdividing the hollow interior of said tip portion into a central conduit and an annular conduit for writing iuid, said conduits terminating adjacent said ball applicator but spaced therefrom by said balls in said sockets and said conduits intercommunicating at both ends of said cylindrical element whereby the hollow interior of said tip portion is subdivided into two zones which intercommunicate at both ends of said tip portion to produce a, manometer effect to quickly expel air bubbles trapped between said reservoir and said ball applicator.

3. A writing instrument as defined in claim 2 wherein the inner wall of said tip portion deiines an annular groove adjacent the end of said cylindrical element remote from said ball applicator and a spring annulus is seated in said groove and bears against the end of said cylindrical element to hold it against axial displacement.

MAURICE J. REED.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this pa-tent;

UNITED 'STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 392,046 Loud Oct. 30, 1888 576,596 Marsh Feb. 9, 1897 600,299 Werner Mar. 8, 1898 1,485,181 Grund Feb. 26, 1924 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 218,660 Switzerland Apr. l, 1942 935,742 France Feb. 9, 1948 

